Israel's Declaration of Independence 1948: Text and Signatories
Read the Declaration's historical claims and civic promises, how its text was negotiated and signed, and who signed it.
Category pages
- What Israel's Declaration of Independence SaysThe Declaration grounds Jewish statehood in the Jewish people's historic connection to the Land of Israel, international recognition, and a natural right to self-determination. It also establishes a provisional government and sets out civic commitments; it is not itself a constitution.
- The Declaration's Drafting and Tzur Yisrael CompromiseA last-minute debate over religious wording ended with the phrase “Tzur Yisrael,” or “Rock of Israel,” in the final sentence. The text records the compromise without resolving whether readers understand it as a name for God or as national language.
- Arab Residents, Citizenship, and the Declaration's PromisesThe Declaration called on Arab inhabitants to preserve peace and help build the state as citizens with equal rights and due representation. It separately offered neighboring states peace, good neighborliness, and cooperation.
- Who Signed Israel's Declaration of Independence?Thirty-seven members of the People's Council signed the Declaration. The roster included two women, Golda Meir and Rachel Cohen-Kagan, as well as religious, labor, Revisionist, communist, and Sephardic or Mizrahi figures.
- The May 14 Ceremony and Israel's First RecognitionBen-Gurion read the Declaration at the Tel Aviv Museum on May 14, 1948, from a prepared text while the parchment's final text was completed later. The United States recognized Israel's provisional government de facto that day; the Soviet Union extended de jure recognition on May 17.